Electrical cells are energy storage devices designed to receive electrical charge from a source, store the charge for some, often extended, period of time and then deliver the charge to a load to power it. Electrical batteries are groups of electrical cells coupled in parallel and/or series to provide a desired amount of electrical charge at a desired current and voltage.
Electrical cells are distinguished from other types of energy storage devices in that they employ chemical potential to store the electrical charge. Popular cell (battery) chemistries today include lead acid, alkaline, nickel cadmium, nickel metal hydride, lithium polymer, lithium ion and lithium phosphate. Lithium ferrophosphate is a particular kind of lithium phosphate.
Batteries are typically manufactured in several steps. First, cells are inspected and sorted to winnow out defective or undesirable cells. Next, the cells are grouped, and metal interconnections are made to connect the opposing terminals of each a group of cells electrically in parallel to form a battery subassembly. Further metal interconnections are then made to connect multiple battery subassemblies electrically in series to form the battery.
More sophisticated batteries are provided with a battery management system (BMS). BMSs are generally configured to control battery charging and discharging and monitor battery parameters to detect or predict conditions that may cause harm to the battery or battery aging. If a BMS is provided, its various sensing leads are coupled to the interconnections. Thereafter, the battery, together with its BMS, is placed in a suitable battery case and terminal connections made.